Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to software provisioning and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for version independent Point of Sale Activation (POSA) product download.
Description of the Related Art
Point of Sale Activation (POSA) cards are used by software providers to enable purchasers to buy a download of a software product from a retail store. The POSA card, whether included in a software product box or a keycard, includes a redemption code that is used by the purchaser to redeem the software product from the software provider. When a purchaser buys the POSA card for the software product, the retail store informs the software provider that the POSA card was sold. When the purchaser, following instructions from the POSA card, logs into the software provider's server and enters the redemption code from the POSA card, the software is downloaded to the purchaser's computer and the software product associated with the redemption code is marked as redeemed in the software provider's database.
Currently, the redemption code on the POSA card is associated with a specific version of the software product. When a new version of a software product is released and shipped to retail stores, all POSA cards for the previous version must be recalled from the retail stores. The POSA cards need to be recalled because when a POSA card is purchased, the buyer is entitled to the latest version of the product. The POSA cards in the retail stores that were shipped for the previous version of the software include redemption codes that provision and download the previous version. As such, new redemption codes must be created for the new version of the software product. The requirement to recall all of the POSA cards for the previous version is a significant expense for the software providers.
Therefore, there is a need for a method and apparatus for version independent Point of Sale Activation (POSA) product download.